


In the Red

by Alltheroads



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Denial, Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-16
Updated: 2017-08-17
Packaged: 2018-09-17 19:37:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9340100
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alltheroads/pseuds/Alltheroads
Summary: Upon discovering that the Red Lion is indifferent towards him, Lance does everything in his power to prove his worth.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Chase, aka aggpo, is my beta reader and my rock.

This whole thing started because Lance was showing off. It’s a problem he has. Honestly, it’s a reflex at this point. Sure, they were just training, so it’s not as big of a deal as it could have been, but he still did it, and that should count for something. 

Lance jumps onto the couch, swinging his legs over with ease. “Did you guys see the way me ‘n Blue totally destroyed the giant Gladiator?” He lets out a laugh and grins. “Oh, man, I wish I could connect with your lions, just to hear how impressed they are.”

Like usual, everyone around him groans. If Lance can’t get a round of applause, he’ll accept those instead. He turns his head to face Keith, who has also made his way over towards the couch. He looks only mildly irritated. Time to change that. Lance’s grin grows. 

“I bet Red was amazed, right Keith? If only I could be the paladin of two lions. ‘Course, Blue totally is the best…” 

Keith gives him a flat look, then replies, “Red doesn’t care.” 

There’s no fire, no hint of jealousy or anything. Which makes it true. Keith would have rolled his eyes, or walked out of the room if it wasn’t. “What do you mean Red doesn’t care? We kicked ass today!” If Red can’t appreciate what a good team that Lance makes with his lion, then Red is sorely lacking in intelligence. He pushes himself up on the couch so that he’s leaning forward in Keith’s direction. 

“It wasn’t a real fight anyway,” Keith points out. “You caught a level 1 Gladiator by surprise when Pidge was distracting it. Do you think that tactic will work on a Galra soldier?” 

Lance doesn’t know why Keith can’t see the fact that what he did was impressive. And why his lion wouldn’t see that either. They’re all part of the same team, aren’t they? Without Blue, they can’t form Voltron. 

“Uh, newsflash, it’s already worked on a Galra soldier. Or was Red not paying attention then, either?” 

Keith sighs heavily. Good, he should be annoyed. “Lance, if you were fighting the Galra, then so were we. So no, Red didn’t notice.” 

For whatever reason, this irritates Lance to no end. He is just as valuable to the team as everyone else, and the fact that Red can’t admit that is unjustified. He’s about to list all the reasons why Red is the worst lion until he hears Pidge groan loudly.

“Guys, we just got back,” Pidge complains. Their hair is all mussed up from the helmet. It’s adorable, but really, they should be using the conditioner that Lance found back on this alien planet. Paladins should look the part as well as fight against tyranny. When people meet their heroes, they are expecting some good looking mother fuckers. “Can we do this later? We’re all tired.”

“First off, no,” Lance says. He wants to get to the bottom of this. Before he gets to his next point, Pidge is already walking away, grumbling about how annoying he’s being. Well. That’s fair. “Second of all, Red should be more friendly towards the other lions! Does Red even like anyone?” 

“What does it matter? She’s not your lion,” Keith says. 

“Yellow likes you, Lance,” Hunk chimes in. Good ol’ Hunk. Of all the people that went into space to become a part of team Voltron, Lance is happiest that Hunk made it up here with him. He’s not only a leg that helps carry Voltron to victory, but he helps keep him sane in these dark times. 

Lance smiles in his direction. “Thanks, buddy. Blue likes you right back.” He gives Keith a look as well, implying that Blue does not like Keith at all. Which isn’t strictly true. Blue, like Yellow, kind of likes everyone. Honestly, he kind of figured it be like that for every lion. Apparently not. “Don’t you think Red should take a page out of their books? Maybe act a little friendlier?” 

Keith rolls his eyes. Again. As if he’s the one here who is really suffering. Who knows? This behavior could affect Voltron which in turn would affect the entire universe! So yes, Red should get her act together. Just admit for once that Lance deserves some recognition. 

“I’m going to hit the training deck.” Keith says to no one in particular. They just finished up training. Lance would never go back so quickly after everything they just did. After a long day, it’s good to kick back and relax, but...

The conversation leaves him feeling unsettled. He was just joking about Red’s approval, but knowing that he doesn’t have it leaves a pit at the bottom of his stomach. They’re supposed to get along right? They’re a team. So how can he make sure that he and Red get along? 

You know, for Volton’s sake. 

“Lance…” Hunk comes over to his side, a nervous energy coming off of him like wisps. “I know that look. Don’t let what Keith says get to you. I’m sure that Red likes you just like everyone else’s lion does.” 

Except he’s sure that Red doesn’t. It doesn’t make any sense. He hasn’t done anything to earn Red’s disdain. “Yeah, why wouldn’t Red like me? I don’t think I’ve ever bumped into her or whatever.” 

There was the time when he did that kick and all of team Voltron fell, but that was just once. Or twice? Either way, an honest mistake. 

“I dunno, man, but let it go,” Hunk implores. “Even Allura said that Red was temperamental. It’s probably just really hard to impress her.” 

Lance groans and slides down the couch. Then, a determined smile spreads across his face. Letting it go is not in Lance’s repertoire. So why should he? He is going to do everything in his power to make sure that Red is aware of how likable he actually is. All he needs to do is come up with a battle plan. 

Get ready, Red. Lance is on the prowl. 

-

First, he must get intel. The most unfortunate part of this plan is the only one he can get information from is Keith. How can he approach this? The guy is permanently on edge like… like the edgelord he is. After giving himself a mental high five, he heads to the training deck where he knows Keith is probably lurking. 

Training isn’t Lance’s favorite thing. As much as he loves showing off, he hates how lanky his body is compared to some of the other paladins, and would rather do his workout in his room. Too bad Allura and Coran frequently make them do stupid things together all the time. Ah, to meet someone new who wasn’t also an alien. That’s the dream. 

The door to the training deck whooshes open. Lance can tell that Keith is totally in the zone. He doesn’t even turn to spare him a look. It’d be so easy to surprise him. Maybe the bot would even kick his butt while he was distracted. That’d be funny as hell, but he’s not that big of an asshole. Instead, he leans against the wall and watches. 

It’s not like Lance pays close attention to Keith’s workout or anything, but he can tell that he’s improved. Where a level 3 training sequence used to be too difficult, he’s cutting through level 4 pretty well. Not with ease, but with time he knows that Keith will excel, just like the bastard excels at everything. 

About five minutes later, the Gladiator is defeated. Keith grins and wipes the sweat off his forehead. Before he can call out to start all over, Lance interrupts him by whistling loudly. 

Keith frowns, his nose wrinkling a little. It’s the dumbest observation Lance has ever made about him yet. “Hey, I gotta ask you a question!” He says while run-walking towards the other paladin. 

“What.” Keith says flatly. It’s not a ‘no’, or a ‘go away’, so Lance thinks that his annoyance levels are pretty low. Instead, he’s just reaching for the water packet that was left nearby. He probably stole it from the kitchen at some point.

While he takes a sip, Lance asks, “What does Red like to do in her downtime?” As soon as the question pops out, he realizes that this may not have been his best course of action. The feeling only gets stronger when he sees Keith’s face grow more puzzled by the second. 

“What are you talking about? Why?” He asks suspiciously. 

Lance puts his hands up placatingly. Lie, lie fast. 

“Just curious. All our lions have personalities you know. Now that they’re not trapped in floating science bubbles, I thought I’d get to know the underappreciated part of the team.” It’s definitely not the best lie, but Keith seems to buy it. 

“Red likes flying.” He says, as if it’s obvious. 

“What? In her downtime? That’s what we do all the time anyway!” Lance can’t exactly go out and fly Red. He’s not sure who would kill him first, her or Keith. 

Keith crosses his arms, the waterpack already emptied. “What did you expect? What does Blue do when she’s not in battle?” 

Lance lifts a finger to explain, but realizes that yeah, Blue pretty much likes the same thing. She probably likes going swimming too, but they haven’t been to a water based planet in forever. “What, so you don’t wash her? Give her a nice wax from time to time?” 

“I take care of Red well enough on my own, thanks,” Keith’s confused frown is morphing into a more irritated glare. 

“Whoa, chill dude,” Lance replies. “I really am curious.” How can sentient, magic lions be okay with being cooped up all the time anyway? They must communicate with one another. Lance wonders what they say about him. After spending 10,000 years apart, they’ve got to have some gossip to catch up on. “Haven’t you wondered?” 

Keith’s shoulders slowly lose their tension. “I make sure to fly her whenever possible. Not always easy out here. So yeah, I’ve thought about it.” 

Hm, so if Red likes flying, maybe Lance can go out with Keith one of these days, fly around with them. They can have a race and everything. Since it’s his idea to get them all out of the castle, he’s sure that Red will finally appreciate him. “So let’s go do it sometime, right? Me n’ Blue, you and Red. Set up an obstacle course or something. We’ll see who’s really the fastest.”

What was once a frown transforms into a smirk. “Wouldn’t be much of a race. Red is objectively the fastest.” 

Lance’s blood boils. “I said obstacle course, not race! Flying the fastest might not be all that useful you if you can’t pass through a ring of fire!” 

“Where would you get a ring of fire?”

“That’s not the point. I’m saying that me and Blue could definitely get through an obstacle course, or a maze, way faster than you guys.” Lance ends up mirroring Keith, crossing his arms. “Unless of course, you’re just scared to face the facts that I’m a better pilot than you?” 

Keith scowls. Good. He shouldn’t get all cocky over a stupid race. He can’t predict the future. Lance can’t wait to see the look on his face when he totally wins. Oh, and when Keith tells him that Red won’t respond to him anymore because she prefers Lance now. 

“You’re on.” Keith says. 

It’s so easy to goad Keith into a competition, it’s almost pathetic. Still, Lance is excited for another chance to prove himself. For one of the lions to think he’s not good enough for this team is unacceptable. They’re all fighting the same cause, aren’t they?

“I bet Allura and Coran have some Voltron training regime leftover they’d be willing to lend to us,” Lance says. “I’ll be meeting you at the finish line.” He grins, trying to convey more confidence than he was feeling. What could possibly go wrong?


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance makes his way through two different obstacle courses.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My love to aggpo. My editor, my birdo.

Lance tries to remember how exactly, he got himself in this situation. Fireballs race past his lion, and he can feel the extreme heat even with his shields up. Allura isn’t holding back at all. Maybe he shouldn’t have flirted with her directly before the race started. He thought that she looked a little eager to throw everything the castle had at both him and Keith.

The only good thing so far is that he isn’t too far behind his team mate. Like he thought, the obstacle course has given him an opportunity to show off his incredible genius. While Keith so often just hacks and slashes his way through so many fights, Lance knows how to think his way through certain situations. 

Fireballs are hard to think through, however. Thank god for ice blasts. Blue spins out of the way, and he gives her a mental high five. After the underwater planet they were stuck on, he’s felt more in sync with her than ever. 

Red races past the two of them, heading towards the finish line. There’s still the crazy mountainous region they have to weave through. Lance will win this thing. He sees a small opening in between two cliffs. The last time he tried to squeeze through something like that, he was in a simulator. And he failed big time. It doesn’t stop him from accelerating towards the opening. 

Sweat beads on his forehead. The distance between him and the mountains close all too quickly. Lance sucks in a breath, and twists the controls. Blue brings her legs up and straightens her body out. From the corner of his eye, Lance can see the edge of the mountain. They were so close. The moment passes. He lets out a triumphant whoop when they make it through to the other side. Blue purrs, and he knows that he’s made her proud. 

It was teamwork, though, and she deserves as much credit as he does. He runs his hand gently over the console. 

That feeling of victory quickly vanishes after that moment. There, at the predetermined finish line, was Red. “Aw, man,” Lance grumbles. Losing is pretty humiliating. He knows that Keith is going to have this intolerable smirk on his face. The urge to just fly towards the castle is there, but he knows that it would only make things worse. Lance takes a deep, calming breath and heads towards the finish line. 

Blue comforts him, letting him know that he’s improved since they first met. He believes it. It’d just be nice to hear that from someone other than Blue. And yeah, he knows that’s selfish and junk, but. 

Whatever. 

He exits Blue and heads towards where Allura and Keith are standing. Lance knows it takes a lot for Allura to look awkward, but Keith’s sullen silence is definitely giving her a run for her money. Lance snickers. Keith’s antisocialness knows no boundaries. 

Lance opens his mouth to accuse Keith of cheating when he’s beaten to the punch. 

“Not bad.” 

Lance blinks. He looks at Keith, who is crossing his arms but smiling. That is not a cocky smirk. He- this isn’t how he imagined losing would be like. Lance looks over at Allura who has a soft smile on her own face as well. 

What is happening. 

His brain finally reboots after about twenty long ticks. 

“I mean, obviously,” Lance responds. He hears Allura sigh next to him. That doesn’t stop him. “The only reason you won is because you cheated.” 

Keith snorts. “I didn’t cheat. I told you, Red is objectively faster.” He still has this amused look on his face. Why can’t he take Lance seriously? Is this pity or something? 

“Not by much,” Lance says, lifting his chin in an act of defiance. “And if she is objectively faster, than you guys didn’t do well at all. So in the end, I’m pretty sure me and Blue won after all.” 

From the corner of his eye, he sees Keith’s expression shift from subtle amusement to his neutral expression. A frown. Lance almost feels guilty. Sometimes, they get along great, but then there are times like these, when he can’t help but mess everything up with just a few words. 

“Alright. The matter was settled,” Allura says, her tone almost patronizing. They haven’t even started fighting yet. Either they’re becoming predictable, or Allura is still tired from their most recent rescue mission. It was strenuous on all of them. “While a good training exercise, we do have other duties to attend to.” She gives a pointed look to Lance, who already kind of feels like shit. 

Despite it being a training exercise, it was a lot of fun. Now, he can feel wave after wave of disapproval crashing over him. He’s not sure if it’s coming from Allura, Red, or Keith, and is less sure which would be the worst. 

Allura turns back towards the castle, while Keith returns to the Red lion. 

So there goes his plan on getting Red to like him. Coming in second is not the thing that’s going to win her favor. Racing isn’t going to help solve his problem, as much fun as that is. He’s going to need to come up with a different tactic. 

-

It’s the dead of night. Or, space night. The time when everyone is supposed to be asleep, basically. Lance is used to doing things like this. He’s skilled in the art of sneaking around when he’s supposed to be doing something productive, or getting some sleep. Rules were meant to be broken. 

He makes his way towards the hangars, relieved to see that no one is in the control room. Not even the mice, those sneaky, spying bastards.

Quietly, he steps inside the elevator to Red’s hangar. It’s no different from his own, besides the bright red lights. Alteans really had a boner for color coded stuff, he guesses. 

So far, so good. 

He stares up at Red and swallows. Already, he’s getting the feeling that he’s not wanted. Well, whatever. He’s going to get Red to like him whether she likes it or not. 

“Hey there, girl,” Lance says, a wide grin breaking out. He still can’t tell if the lions see just through their eyes, or if they have some sort of omniscience thing going on. “I brought some really good stuff for you. I’ll make you nice and super clean. You’ll like that, won’t you?” 

A low, warning growl fills the room, but Lance refuses to be deterred. “C’mon, a nice wax? I know you’d like to look pretty! A shiny, pretty space lion.” He grabs the nearby bucket and fills it with water. Then he squirts the weird, bright green soap into the bucket, dips his sponge in, and presses it to her front right paw. 

He moves it in a slow, circling motion. This always calms Blue right down after a particularly difficult mission. The low grumbling is still there. Lance continues his work, sure that this is the way to do things, to patch things up with a team members. Even though he doesn’t remember doing anything wrong. 

It doesn’t matter how gentle, or soothing he thinks he is, Red doesn’t let up at all. Her paw is practically sparkling, and she doesn’t give a damn. What more does she want? Lance stands up and glares at the Red lion.

“I’m trying here! You won’t even tell me what’s wrong!” Which he guesses is sort of impossible anyway. They can communicate with their own lions, but no one has really been able to talk with another lion. Except Keith. Apparently, he helmed the Black lion for like, two seconds. 

What is Keith doing differently than he is? Lance works hard. So maybe he doesn’t live inside the training deck or launch himself directly at the heart of the enemy. He’s on this team for a reason. Isn’t he? 

Maybe it’s talent that he’s lacking. 

Obviously Keith is good at what he does. Lance has seen him in action, seen the crazy maneuvers he’s pulled. It’s even arguable that he’s done the most improving with his lion. That crazy cannon thing that Red had during her battle with Zarkon was incredible. Lance hasn’t even figured out what his Bayard will do when they form Voltron

But, he argues with himself, he and Blue have totally improved as well. They have the sonar thing. On the planet that was completely underwater, Lance and Blue were completely in sync. That’s their natural fighting ground- which is extra unfair, since the universe isn’t 70% ocean like the earth is. 

Red naturally fits in with the universe. Everything must be so easy, to just be herself and to… His hands ball up into fists. “Fine, if you won’t tell me, then there’s no point in me trying anymore.” 

That must have especially pissed her off, since he’s swatted away with her tail. The attack wasn’t hard, and won’t leave any lasting damage, but it did knock the breath right out of him. 

Lance pushes himself up to his knees when he spots a familiar pair of boots. Uh oh. 

“What are you doing?” 

Why is his life like this? What did Lance ever do to deserve to be embarrassed like this? It’s like Red waited for the moment for Keith to arrive to knock him over. That is so not cool. He scrambles to stand up once more, and finds himself grateful for being an inch and a half taller than Keith. It’s hard to be intimidated by someone shorter than you. 

“What’s it to ya?” Lance asks, crossing his arms. In truth, he has no real idea how to explain what he’s doing. The only explanations that he can come up with are too damn embarrassing to say out loud, so he’s just gonna try and annoy Keith away. 

Unfortunately, he didn’t count on Red being a tattletale. Keith’s attention is pulled towards her. Lance can feel his face warming as Keith’s face scrunches up in confusion. There’s that stupid nose wrinkle. 

“You’re trying to wax her,” Keith deadpans. “To get her to like you.” 

“It just so happens that I am good at pampering people,” If only the crew would allow him to help them. Pidge’s pores are huge, if they just let him use this mask he’s been concocting, they’d both be a lot happier. Just to prove his point, he picks up the sponge and continues his work. Keith clearly doesn’t know how to get people to like him, what with his stand-offish attitude, and sarcasm. And his fuckin’ high horse. He’s just a jerk. 

As if to prove his point, Keith snorts, and snatches the sponge out of his hands. See? Uppity, no good… 

“Y’a’int gonna get her to like you like that,” 

The world around him seems to freeze. Slowly, he turns to look at Keith, who is standing there with his arms crossed. Does he really have no clue?

“What,” Lance looks him dead in the eye. “What did you just say?” 

Keith’s confused frown makes a comeback. “What?” He parrots. 

“No, no,” Lance shakes his head, a smile slowly creeping across his face. “Don’t act like you didn’t. Say it again.” 

“Say what again?” 

Well Lance sure as shit isn’t going to say that outloud. His mama raised him not to use slurs, and he’s not about to start now. “That I am not going to get her to like me like that?” He over enunciates the proper grammar. 

That was the final straw, and he can tell by the scowl on Keith’s face. Oh man, and he’s even blushing. That’s almost adorable. “Are you serious right now?” 

This is the best thing that’s ever happened to Lance, so yes, he’s serious. 

“Where’d you grow up? Somewhere in the south? I can’t believe I never noticed before this!” Lance says, practically gleeful. Keith has been the one with the deep, dark, mysterious past. Well, turns out he’s a fucking hick. Amazing. “It’s Texas, isn’t it?” The look on Keith’s face confirms the theory. 

Lance laughs. “Oh my god, oh my god,” He has to clutch his sides. At least he’ll finally have those abs he’s been dreaming about. “K-keith, do you have a ten gallon hat? Did you ride a horse on the way to school? What about-”

A wet sponge smacks him right in the face. Once Lance clears away the suds, he looks back up at Keith who, once again, has this smug look on his face. 

He’d already washed his face tonight, and he’ll have to do it all over again because Keith can’t take a few jokes. Lance grabs the sponge off the ground and dunks it back into the bucket, but Keith is already running to the other side of the lion. 

“Come back here, you cowboy piece of shit!” Keith is fast, but Lance is determined. He’s not going to leave until he gets in one good hit. The war is only beginning when he notices that Keith managed to get himself a sponge. They’re both armed now. Armed and dangerous. 

Keith races towards the bucket, but he’s too far away. Lance takes aim, and throws the heavy sponge. When it hits Keith’s forehead with a plopping sound, he punches the air in victory. Keith dunks both sponges in the water and chases after him. It’s not exactly cheating that he ducks under Red’s legs to cut across and knock him over. 

Wet sponges are thrown, water is spilled all over the hangar, and eventually, the two of them are totally soaked. Lance is dryer, however, as Keith’s aim isn’t as good as his own. For the first time, he doesn’t really care that he won. Keith has this stupid, flushed look on his face. And he’s smiling. They’ve stopped horsing around for now, but he still kind of feels out of breath. 

Keith looks around the hangar and sighs. “This is a mess,” He admits.

“Yeah, that’s what happens when you act on impulse, stupid,” Lance points out, making sure to keep his tone light. He doesn’t want to ruin this. It reminds him of the space snowball fight, but he can’t help but think that this was way more fun. 

“Shut up,” Keith replies. Then he adds, “Come on. We haven’t had an emergency drill in a while. Pretty sure that Allura is going to change that.” He leads Lance out of the hangar, leaving the mess for tomorrow. 

They both end up bitching about the unnecessary drills, and how Coran’s never failing upbeat attitude in the early hours makes it worse until they wind up in front of Lance’s door. Lance doesn’t realize how fast time has gone by, until Keith gives him an awkward wave, and turns towards his room. 

He’s left standing there, damp and confused. 

What just happened?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also hahaha sorry this is late but I get nervous about Everything. I'm still working on this fluffy thing and still have ideas in mind don't worry. 
> 
> Also also follow me on tumblr, my username is miraculance.
> 
> ALSO ALSO ALSO If you please leave a comment, that'd be greatly appreciated! My birthday is tomorrow, if that gives you more incentive.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance struggles naming his feelings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aggpo aka Chase is an angel. Also, my beta reader. Give her all the love.

Things were better. Between him and Keith. Sure, they still bicker all the time, but that’s who they are. Asking Lance and Keith to stop bickering is like asking them to stop breathing. So yeah. It’s been better ever since that impromptu water war. He likes being closer to Keith this way, likes getting to see him smile because of a dumb joke he made, and likes that they shared (dare he say it) a bonding moment. He might even go so far as to say that he’d like to have more. 

The one thing he won’t do is think about why he’s okay with all of this. Beneath the surface is something lurking, something indefinable, scary, and new. He finds himself wondering what Keith thinks about this, if he also has this foreboding dark cloud lurking overhead. Or if maybe, he thinks that this is just some normal fun thing that they have. Lance isn’t sure what he wants, or what he wants Keith to want.

So. Yeah. Definitely not thinking too hard about this. At all. 

Though he’s known to bitch about how often and how many missions they get, he’s actually kind of happy to keep busy. It helps him with the not thinking thing. Plus, Lance thinks he improves more with the diplomacy bullshit when he’s on the job. 

Allura’s tips and tricks on how to interact with foreign leaders is helpful and all, but you can’t really rely on all of those rules. People are different, and you’ve got to be able to read them. Alien or not. 

Which is why, he thinks, Allura brought them all to this planet to kind of refine their skills. There’s been a lull in Galra activity, and although that’s worrying by itself, it gives them an opportunity to expand their alliances with other planets. 

Allura has reached out to civilizations that the Alteans were friendly with before, but that can only hold so much weight. 10,000 years have passed, so the alliance that they might hold is shaky at best. Their reputation as defenders of the universe holds more water than the Altean’s legacy. Lance has seen how it’s affected Allura, and has decided to try not to mess this up too badly. 

He’s leaving a healthy margin of error, though. 

The planet Kor is icy, though the people seem to be quite warm. Both in personality, and in general. The humanoid populace of the central city (which is a name he can’t pronounce,) reminds him of polar bears, with their pure white fur and dark noses. It’s almost hard to keep his eyes open, everything is so white. 

The new planet does open up a wonderful thread of ‘Pidge Is So White’ jokes, however, and it’s made funnier by the looks on Allura and Coran’s face when they try to puzzle out just why these jokes are so funny. 

It’s not a party like it usually is when Team Voltron arrives, but Lance is surprisingly okay with that this time. As much as he loves meeting new people and seeing new places, he’s a little burnt out. This is the third planet they’ve visited this month in terms of trying to make new allies. Lance is all aliened out. 

And, to be honest, a little homesickness is getting in the way. Times like these, he’d rather be at the castle, chilling out with Hunk and Pidge. They’re the closest thing to home now, since he knew them Before. Then again, the longer they stay in space, the more ‘home’ the castle becomes. 

Lance has yet to figure out how he feels about that, but it’s probably not positive. 

But regardless, he finds himself here in a small get together of diplomats in the freezer that passes as this planet’s main political hub, so he’s going to make the best of it. So far, it’s actually not that bad. 

Since it’s not a huge party with both Voltron trying to impress the aliens and vice versa, it feels more like a meet and greet socializing party that RAs back in college forced on incoming freshman. Awkward, but ultimately helpful. Plus, the food is great. And by great, he means it isn’t food goo. 

So it’s a pleasant night. For polar bear people with scary bright neon eyes, they’re all pretty chill. If they weren’t living such a tense, fast paced life, Lance might not’ve appreciated them. 

While Allura, Coran, and Shiro talk with the head polar bear person/alien, the rest of them ask about their lifestyle in the freezing city. Though they have a thin layer of fur, they seem comfortable without any other means of clothes. Besides armor, anyway. 

What makes the polar bear aliens such great allies is that they are all hardcore soldiers. They fight with these crazy looking spears, and their armor is on another level. It even impresses the Alteans, who haven’t seen the advances their society has made in over 10,000 years. Honestly, it’s probably why they’re all so relaxed all the time. With the brutal fighting style, and gladiator like games they hold every year, they work out most of their aggression on the battlefield. If not there, then through their metalcore music, which is playing quietly even now. 

It’s a new, interesting culture that Lance is happy to experience for maybe a few hours. 

The one he and Hunk are talking to, Sijen is talking about the last war their people were in, which was centuries ago. While they all do enjoy a great battle, they don’t seem too eager to join a war. Taking things in small doses, he guesses. 

Lance’s attention fades out of the conversation. History was boring on his own planet, and the soft tones Sijen is speaking in makes it difficult to pay attention. Instead, he lets his eyes wander around the room. 

Pidge is trying to figure out how the tech here works when everything is covered in ice. He thinks they said something earlier about how they might want to see if it’s similar to Blue’s tech at all, seeing as Blue is chill as fuck. It’s so cute to see them get excited over shit. But it doesn’t hold his attention for long, either. 

He’s not even going to try to eavesdrop on the grownups. There’s no way that they’re saying anything that Lance hasn’t heard before. 

So really, it’s by process of elimination that he ends up watching Keith. It’s kind of funny to see him deal with the cold, especially being the paladin of fire. Truthfully, Lance hates being cold too, but Keith has always had problems with how much he’s hated things. 

And boy, does he hate the cold. His nose is all red, and his arms are crossed for a reason other than his whole bad boy attitude schtick he refuses to let go of. Amazing. Lance is about to go over to him to tease him about all the observations he’s just made when some polar bealien beats him to the punch. 

Lance frowns, but doesn’t look away. Usually, Keith is pretty good about telling people to piss off, and he imagines that things won’t be so different here. But then, the polar bear must be some sort of super special knight, because they’re suddenly taking off their cape and swinging it around Keith. 

Any moment now, Keith will tell them off. Any moment. The alien sits down next to Keith. Suddenly, Lance is more aware of their more humanoid aspects. They do share the white fur, and dark noses, but their eyes are large and jewel like. He’s got long, pointed ears like the alteans do, and a silvery mane in a mohawk. They’re human enough shaped that flirting wouldn’t be seen as a bad thing, not really. But Lance can’t be the only one who associated them with polar bears, right?

He scowls when Keith leans forward to look at the battle axe the alien is showing to him. It’s huge and glistening. Lance wonders how it manages to fit in their stupid tiny fingers. Shouldn’t they have claws, or whatever? Keep up with the whole motif, at least? The guy sitting next to Keith then turns his weapon over to him, and Keith holds it delicately, watching it glisten in the light. The stupid cape around his shoulders, a dark grey, almost makes him look like one of the knights. 

Going from one furry image, to another, Lance thinks. It falls flat, even in his own head. Knowing Keith, they’re probably talking battle tactics, or the benefits of an axe over a sword. It’s boring. Yet here he is, unable to look away. 

“Dude,” He gets a gentle nudge from Hunk. “You okay?” 

It’s a challenge to look away from Keith and his new _friend,_ but when he does he realizes just how much his annoyance was probably showing on his face. 

The alien they were talking to is leaning back in their chair. “I apologize if I’ve offended you…” They say in a relaxed, but genuine tone. 

Lance has to stop himself from sighing. What the hell was he getting so worked up about? And at the cost of an incredibly important alliance? C’mon, he knows better than that. He forces a smile and shakes his head. 

“Nah, this is just some pretty strong skül,” He says lightly, hoping his pronunciation isn’t too far off. Hunk smiles, but Lance can tell that he’s still worried. That means he’s going to have to deal with an interrogation later, because Hunk is the nosiest person he knows. As much as Lance likes talking about his problems, he has no idea how he’s supposed to explain this. 

The conversation slowly returns to normal, with Hunk and (Siv? Tiv? Who knows.) the alien speaking of a shared passion of cooking. Apparently, there’s something akin to tacos on this planet. Normally, Lance would be interested in anything that doesn’t taste like the bland food goo he has to choke down every day, but he’s distracted by the conversation taking place a few stools down. 

Keith and Polar Axe guy are _still_ talking. They’re leaning in close to one another. At some point, Keith has even brought out a knife that he bought a few planets back. He has this look on his face that he only gets when he’s deep into a conversation, with a small smile he has trouble controlling. And when the Axe guy looks like he’s explaining some boring battle tactic, the deep concentrated look appears. A knot between his eyebrows, and that cute nose wrinkle. 

It’s like… why does this guy get Keith’s full attention? One cape and a stupid weapon? Seriously? Keith and he have never fought together, or trained together, or eaten together. They’ve got nothing in common. That guy isn’t even that attractive. 

Lance realizes he’s focusing too much on this. He’s probably making things awkward for Hunk and Tiv, and he doesn’t want to be That Guy. Hell, he doesn’t even know why he’s being like this. He flashes a wide smile to his table mates, and excuses himself. He needs some air. Or whatever this planet’s equivalent of air even is. 

He tries not to think about how Shiro and Allura will probably give him the powerful disappointment look later since he’s already feeling shitty enough. Besides, he’s too preoccupied with thoughts of Keith and Battle Axe Polar Bear. This shouldn’t be making him feel so angry. Yet Keith has had the ability to bring out strong feelings in him. Lance hates that he has that power. Wishes he knew how to take that power away. 

Without meaning to, he ends up in the Hub’s hangar. Probably to seek the comfort of Blue, who has always been the one to help quell his loneliness and insecurities. Unfortunately, the first lion he sees is Red. 

Red is the fastest, so he shouldn’t be surprised. Keith never fucking waits for anyone, refuses to slow down. That means he gets the best parking spots. 

Asshole. 

Obviously, he can’t communicate with Red like he can with Blue, but he can’t help but think that she’s judging him. As if the giant space robot lion found a horse big and high enough to mount, just to look down on him. He glares right back, crossing his arms. 

“What?” He asks. “You weren’t even _there_ , so you can’t judge me.” Somehow, he thinks, she’ll find a way to do so anyway. 

What right does she have? God, she’d probably prefer Axe Polar Bear Warrior Dude to be the Blue Paladin, wouldn’t she? Tough, she’s stuck with him. And she shouldn’t even feel like she’s stuck with him because he’s far more charming. Oh, and he’s done his fair share of sacrificing for Red. For Voltron. 

Same thing, sort of. 

From here, he can feel Blue try and comfort him, as if to say _don’t listen to her, she doesn’t know what she’s talking about._ Which, obviously. Of course Red doesn’t see what she’s missing out on. Lance is used to being overlooked by now, anyway. 

“What are you doing here?” 

Lance turns his head sharply, surprised to see Keith standing there, devoid of the cape that was draped around him just minutes ago. Pretty stupid of him, since he looks like he’s cold already. It does nothing to diminish the anger he’s feeling. 

“Did Allura send you? Or Shiro?” He asks, unable to keep the tightness out of his voice. Even socially awkward Keith seems to notice. 

“No,” Keith says slowly. “You just disappeared. That’s…” He shrugs and looks away. “Not like you. 

“Yeah? Well, it’s not like you to chat up some guy at a party,” What is he _doing?_ Lance knows right away that this is not an okay thing to do. But the words spill from his mouth, making a mess out of nothing. Why is he like this? 

“What’s your problem?” Keith narrows his eyes and crosses his arms. “He was talking about this planet’s weaponry, how they fight. Y’know, important things to know for the alliance?” 

Fuck, he’s right. It doesn’t change the fact that Keith doesn’t exactly go out of his way to make friendly with the locals, though. Apparently, all it takes is a pretty face and a sharp edge to get Keith’s attention. Lame. “Please, I saw you putting the moves on that dude.” Is that what that was? “Not exactly the best place for that, don’t you think?” 

“You fucking _hypocrite,_ ” Keith hisses, taking a step forward. Weird how often they get in each other’s faces like this. “You flirt with everything that moves, but I can’t even talk to someone?” 

Fuck, he’s right again. Does Keith really have to be such a know it all? Unfortunately, Lance is still experiencing some out of body bullshit, and doesn’t back down. One of these days he’s got to learn his lesson, right? 

If only he had something resembling an argument, it might feel less childish. Instead, he only responds with a flat, “Whatever.” 

There’s a moment of silence. It’s worse than when they’re actually fighting. He wishes Keith would tell him to fuck off, but instead he just shakes his head and storms off, seemingly to return to the Hub’s meeting room. Maybe to talk to the Alien Axe Guy again. 

Once he’s out of view, Lance sags. He wonders once again why Keith makes him feel like this. Like he’s stumbling blind through a forest, often bumping into trees, looking for a path that’ll lead him… lead him where? He’s so lost, it’s not even funny. 

With a look upward, he sees the Red Lion once more. Her expression hasn’t changed, and neither has her disdain for him. This time, he thinks that he probably deserves it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been so long... It's been difficult financially for me lately, and I'm still going to school though I'm graduating in a month. Playing with the idea of opening a patreon? Still, I'm working hard to get these finished because I love creating, I love making worlds and toying in others. <3 
> 
> Thank you so much for your continued support, I literally cannot describe how much it means to me.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Lance concerns himself with the state of his and Keith's friendship, a new mission pops up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Obligatory 'sorry for the wait'. D: 
> 
> Not so obligatory love to Chase/Aggpo who is my emotional support through everything and more <3

The biggest problem with the next few days is that Lance can feel the shift in their relationship. Things were back to the way they were before, and it feels awful. He wants to go back to that weird phase of their friendship. Which, while it confused him, left him feeling good at the end of the day. It left him lying in bed at night, and imagining conversations they'd have in the future, stuff that Keith might like. Stuff that Lance could show him. He'd even imagine them training together, since he knows that Keith loves that kind of thing. 

But now, they're bickering, sometimes with more heat than usual. An extension of this problem is that he doesn't know how to talk about it. Of course Hunk would listen to what he has to say, but since he can't put his feelings into a cohesive statement, he doesn't imagine there's much of a point of trying. Instead, he takes the more constructive path and sulks whenever he has free time. Well, sometimes when they're busy doing important Voltron stuff too. His stupid happiness is put on hold until he figures out a way to patch this up. 

This also puts his mission to get Red to admire him at a standstill, too. It's still important to him. Now, more than ever. He thinks that maybe if he can get Red on his side, maybe she can do something? Bestow some fiery advice onto him. She's got to have the best idea outside of Shiro on how to get through to Keith. 

So what else can he do, really? After the stunt on the icy planet, it's going to take a lot to even get back to square one. And honestly? He gets why. Accusing Keith of getting distracted by some polar bear pretty boy was completely out of line. Of course Red would be pissed at him. Blue gets annoyed when someone on the team speaks down to him. Hm. This is going to be tough. 

He could have stayed there all day, lying in bed thinking up schemes to get Red to like him again, but the screen next to him flickers on. Probably a message that there's some big important Voltron mission. Lance isn't exactly in the mood to go and do something responsible, but there's really no way to avoid it out here. So he checks his message to confirm that yeah, there's a new mission. 

Lance rolls out of bed, stuffing the communication device into his pocket and heads towards the door. He stops just short of triggering the door to open. Keith's room is right next to his, so. So, you know. He should wait a moment or two. Give Keith a head start. It's giving him some space! Honestly, it's really considerate of him. 

...God, he's pathetic. After he's sure that Keith, who might or might not have been in his room, is far enough ahead, he leaves. He's got to fix this. Lance is determined now, and once he has a goal in mind, nothing stops him. 

When he reaches the deck, the only one missing is Hunk. He'd been tinkering with one of Pidge's inventions which wasn't quite working they way they wanted it to. They've certainly come a long way since their Garrison days. Assholes. Though right now, Pidge is looking ansty. 

Lance narrows his eyes, then realizes that this is going to be another rescue mission. Of course Pidge looks like they're half out of their mind. The team has gone through this song and dance before- at this point, Pidge is tired of it all. They're ready to be reunited with their family. Lance gets that. He hopes, for their sake, that this time will prove fruitful.

"Sorry I'm late," Hunk says, somewhat out of breath. While he knows that this is a serious issue, it's kind of nice to not be the one who is late all the time. Lance smiles to himself when Allura glares lightly at Hunk. It's hardly the look that she usually gives him, but it's something. By now, he's used to taking most of the flack. 

"Pidge found another prison holding on a Galran ship not too far from here," Shiro says, looking at Pidge with a bit of pride. They smile back up at him, though it's tentative. 

"We don't know if they're holding my dad or brother there, but it looks like a huge number of prisoners are trapped on there anyway," they take over. 

Pidge then looks at Allura and nods. With a small flick of the princess's hand, a blueprint of the ship is brought up on the holoscreen. It's bulky looking labyrinth with thin hallways, large rooms, and few exits. If prisoners managed to escape their cells, it'd be nearly impossible for them to find their way out. 

"The problem is, there's a lot of Galra soldiers on board. Probably a lot of drones, too," Shiro takes back the floor, easily, overlooking all the paladins in the room. 

From the corner of his eye, he can see Keith cross his arms. It's clear that this is going to be more of a stealth mission than a go in guns blazing sort of thing. Lance smirks. No matter how good Keith is at fighting, he still can't figure out that sometimes the best tactic isn't killing everything in sight. He opens his mouth to say just that, but is cut off by Shiro. 

"Usually, we'd send in the green lion, since she's the only one with the cloaking device installed, however, there's a detection system separate from the ship that we're sending Pidge to take care of." Pidge stands a little taller next to Shiro, looking determined as ever. "So while we still need to be stealthy, we're going to need to be quick, too." 

Keith's pouting abruptly ends. Quick is synonymous with red, afterall. Lance doesn't know why he thought even for a moment that Keith wouldn't somehow be involved with this. 

"Since the Galra are closely guarding this prison ship, we're pretty sure they've got some important people on there. Diplomats, royalty, maybe even some soldiers." This is starting to sound more and more difficult. 

"Okay, so how are we gonna get in unnoticed? 'Cause I'd really like to not be noticed while we do the rescuing," Hunk says, looking uncomfortable. 

"A distraction, right?" Lance suggests. "An explosion maybe?" 

"No." Shiro shakes his head. "We do want to divert their attention, but nothing too big to alert them that we're actually there.”

"Our plan is to destroy part of their ship and make it look like it's a basic malfunction," Allura cuts in. The blueprints of the ship shift to a look at the exterior. Lance crosses his arms as she zooms in on the back part of the prison ship. "The Galra seem to have a critical design flaw here. It's been known to break down after several years. Since this ship is already a few decafeebs, we figure that it shouldn't take more than a gentle nudge to dislodge one of their main thrusters.”

Seems like an okay plan. 

"Lance, Keith. You two will infiltrate while the rest of the team keeps the attention on the malfunction. If the Galra catch on, we'll bring the fight to them so that they won't have a chance to get to you, or the prisoners." Shiro finishes off. 

Well, it sounded like an okay plan until Shiro decided to pair him and Keith up. Since when was that a good idea? Oh, sure, it might seem like a good idea since they've done well together in the past. But now? There's a road block. Something that might get in the way of their... partnership. And though he has faith in Pidge, Hunk, and Shiro, he knows that by now, nothing goes according to plan. 

Since they have that high security thing going on, Lance is pretty freaking positive that they'll all be skittish, and are probably trying to move their special guest from the ship to some desolate planet.

“This could really easily turn into a shit show,” Lance says. Allura glares at him, and he can’t help but wonder when she figured out that shit was about as polite a word as quiznak is. 

-

Okay, so like, this is much worse than they anticipated. When Lance suggested this might be a shit show, he didn’t think it was going to be this bad. Even when he and Keith are at odds, they work well together. Keith with his samurai cool guy thing, and Lance as the plan-ny sharpshooter. Still, while this usually works, the whole distraction technique they were going for didn’t work out. Obviously.

Pidge discovered far too late that there was a tertiary alarm system on board. When he and Keith were unlocking the prisoners from their cells, the alarm went blaring. The Galra were on the other side of ship, trying to fix the broken piece of space thruster. They haven’t quite figured out what set it off yet, but it isn’t so important. The main focus is, you know, getting the hell out. 

Lance can hear an anxiety inducing amount of footfalls coming from down the hallways. Any minute now, they’re going to be swamped by Galra soldiers and they haven’t even finished evacuating the prisoners. 

Plus, it sucks that the Holts weren’t even on board, but he’s almost used to the disappointment at this point. The important thing is, they’re helping people. Well, they’ll be helping people if they can get out of this alive. Another problem is the sheer amount of prisoners. All different alien races of different sizes. Though Blue is the bigger lion, it was decided that Red should be the one to come. Since she’s faster, they’ll be able to get away in an emergency. Funny how those seem to happen all the time. 

So while the two of them are ushering the prisoners into (a cranky) Red, Lance is trying to work out what’s going to happen next. The Galra are getting closer, and from what he’s looking at now, there’s no way all the prisoners will get on board before they arrive. And, as talented as Keith is, he won’t be able to fight the sheer amount of Galra coming in. It’s impossible. 

What makes the most sense is Lance standing his ground and picking off the Galra as they come down this cramped hallway. One gun against a hoard doesn’t look good, especially since they’ll have guns as well, but there’s that old saying about bringing a knife to a gunfight. He’s pretty sure that swords apply to that statement. 

That does mean he has to trust Keith with evacuating people who will be slow, sensitive, and weak. Keith can do that, right? Right. Keith has a heart, obviously. It’s buried so deeply that it only shines through occasionally, but it’s there. 

In truth though, Lance is more worried about himself. He’s never taken on this many Galra outside his lion before. Hell, even when he’s in his lion he’s not so good at this, much as he likes to claim that he is. Fuck. The sound of boots pounding against the metal floor is getting closer. He better just tell Keith what’s up. 

Without him having to say a word, Keith is suddenly by his side. Of course. Keith just knows how to do everything, right? Ugh. He’s got to stop thinking stuff like that. It’s probably why he’s going to die without telling Keith he was a jerk before. And not like in the playful witty banter way that he likes to think they have. Just a regular, run of the mill, jerk. 

But maybe, at the very least, he can get through this mission without being some kind of burden. He’ll be more than the comic relief so that Keith can finish evacuating the prisoners. Simple. Not easy, but simple. He takes a deep breath, then turns to look at his partner in crime. 

“I got this, okay?” His hands are shaking and he refuses to look at Keith yet. If he does, he thinks he’ll buckle under the pressure and let Keith be his awesome self. Which still wouldn’t work. 

“Lance, don’t be stupid. You can’t-”

“No, you can’t take them down. At a distance, I can. I can give you time to finish up with the refugees, okay?” 

Keith expression is kinda hard to read, but to be fair, that’s not so different from usual. 

“Keith. I got this. Go.” And yeah, maybe he’s not ready to, but he does turn to look at Keith. He smiles his most obnoxious smile. Because listen- Lance is not gonna die here. The lions are just outside. Keith is here. And Lance still needs to have his parade. Even if it’s just from one person. Even if he’s the one throwing it for someone else. 

It takes another long moment of contemplation on Keith’s part before he nods, and runs off to finish what they started. Good. Lance takes a deep breath. And he aims his gun at the oncoming hoard. 

It’s more or less the chaos he was expecting. Lance is, amazingly, so far, keeping up. He has the Galras poor ship designing skills to thank for that. This one was built as a prison ship, not so much for fighting stray paladins of Voltron. Everything is going so fast though, he knows that eventually the Galra that continue to pour into the hallway will push back and Lance will lose momentum. 

He prays that Keith is almost done rounding up the prisoners. Before the alarm had gone off, they were about 2/3rds through the process anyway. It’s also kinda hard to tell how much time has passed since this attack has started. With the pile of bodies starting to line up (and shit, Lance has never really thought about it before, but he’s killing people, isn’t he?) it’s been a while. 

Lance fires what’s probably the twentieth shot when he notices Keith in his peripheral. To his surprise, Keith turns to look at him with this stupid, quiet smile. Somehow, it looks like Keith is sharing a secret with him. All he can do is smile back before he turns back to the matter at hand. But there’s no one else coming. Lance could have sworn that there were more Galra on board. Are they all so busy with the maintenance that they can’t come after the prisoners? 

Maybe there’s no one diplomatically important after all. Slowly, Lance lowers his bayard. 

"...Okay," Keith says. They were both expecting more out of this disaster, but it's a good thing. They can just leave now. No more Galra. Well, except one, but that's clearly different. 

They both take a few steps backwards, watching the unconscious, injured purple bodies for the one that might pop out like some horror movie monster. None are moving. Lance turns his back on them, honestly feeling a little sick at looking at all of them at once. 

"Let's get out of here," He says. Keith stares out at the Galra for another moment before he nods and they both start to head towards Red. She'll be wanting to get all the prisoners out of her sooner rather than later. Lance knows she's got a whole trust issue thing, and doesn't blame her for wanting some space to herself. 

Lance hears a quick blast, but doesn't have time to get out of the way. It grazes his left shoulder, making him drop his bayard. He feels the burn through his armor. Next thing he knows, Keith has disappeared from his side to go back towards the hallway where one errant Galra is waiting for him. Idiot. Why can't he ever just think about things? He reaches down for his bayard and hisses when he straightens up. 

Keith's bayard is out, and he's holding it menacingly. He searches among the Galra. They all look completely out. There's really nothing Lance can do. Yet he inches forward, his own bayard at the ready. He wants to say it was just some stupid Galra weapon that wasn't working, but he knows better than to be optimistic by now. If some Galra pops up now, he can only hope that he lives up to his own nickname. It's not as if Keith will move out of the way if there's a fight right in front of him. 

Suddenly, someone immediately next to Keith yanks at his ankle, nearly pulling him downwards. While he takes a moment to regain his balance, the Galra jumps to their feet. He stands in front of Keith in a hunched sort of way. Lance can't get a clear shot. He wants to scream with frustration. 

Keith strikes first, but the Galra is ready for him. He doesn't look injured at all. At some point, he must have just feigned getting hit so he could bide his time. Asshole. The soldier is huge, reminding him of Sendak. Thankfully, there's no cyborg arm. 

The hallway is too tight and cramped to really do anything significant, Lance thinks. That’s why he doesn’t expect the Galra’s massive hand coming up and smacking Keith’s head right into the wall. It’s viciously quick, and the sound that follows is going to echo through Lance’s mind for a long time. 

His move to knock out Keith was their biggest flaw. Now the Galra lost his human shield. Oh, and that guilt that was starting to set in before? Completely gone. Lance doesn’t feel anything when he fires at the Galra except satisfaction. 

The Galra doesn’t even hit the floor before Lance is running towards Keith. He’s moving around, so he’s not dead, which, thank god. But still, that hit looked… Lance can’t get it out of his mind. 

“Keith!” He kneels down and takes a hold of one of Keith’s hands. “You okay?” Lance looks over him, but there’s no immediate signs of hurt. However, he looks a little disoriented. 

“I’m… I’m fine,” Keith says. He’s sitting up and blinking hard. With his free hand, he rubs at the side of his helmet. 

“C’mon, we gotta get out of here,” Lance says, still watching Keith carefully. He pulls them both up. Keith ends up stumbling into him a little. It’s difficult not to get paranoid about what’s went wrong. That Galra probably gave him a concussion or something. Lance had thought that the helmets would’ve protected them from that, but maybe not? 

He takes Keith’s arm and pulls it over his shoulder, holding onto him. There’s no telling how many Galra are left on this ship. Pidge is no doubt helping on the outside, but he can’t could on that forever. 

“Lance,” Keith says to him while they’re walking towards Red. “‘M fine.” But Lance is ignoring him, focusing on the task at hand: get Keith to safety. The sooner they get him to a pod, the better. Head injuries are pretty serious, right? Still: helmets. It’s can’t be that bad. Or could it? Ugh. 

“ _Lance_ ,” Keith says again. 

This time, Lance looks at him from the corner of his eye. 

"Yeah, yeah," he says. He doesn't think that Keith is too badly hurt, but he also can't shake this worry. While they're walking, Keith is leaning into him, and stumbling a little bit. And a small stumble to Keith? That says a lot. The guy is usually so well coordinated, especially when they're in the middle of a crisis. "You're the picture of perfect health." 

His little sister had a concussion once while playing field hockey. It can get pretty serious. Lance is not going to let it get serious. 

Red is already leaning downwards, allowing him and Keith entrance. She's not like Blue, where Lance knows her every emotion. But still, Lance can tell that she's on edge. This is not a happy lion. By now, everyone on Team Voltron knows how protective the impulsive Red gets over her Paladin. Lance feels her irritation prickling at his skin. 

They make it up to Red's cockpit with little trouble, but Lance is starting to realize that there's a problem here. 

How is Keith supposed to fly while he's concussed? 

"Uh, okay, okay," Lance says, starting to feel kind of jittery. Of course the thought of flying Red occurs to him. But would she let him? They aren't on the best of terms right now. And he doesn't exactly blame her, either. "Okay." Well, fuck it. Fuck this whole mission, and fuck earning Red's respect. Lance helps Keith down onto the floor. Less help, though, and more push. 

"Lance, what are you doing? I can still-" 

"Oh, my god." Lance looks him dead in the eye. As much as he thinks it's cool when Keith beats all odds and wins the day, sometimes, that shit just doesn't work out. "You can barely walk a straight line right now. Just... sit there, and I'll get us out of here." 

Keith is looking up at him. They really don't have time for this whole wordless communication thing, but he holds Keith's unrelenting gaze all the same. When he nods, Lance lets out a sigh of relief. The truth is, he's not sure what else to do. All his knowledge on concussions comes from one incident years ago. Lance just has to trust that he's doing the right thing here. No pressure. 

Lance sits in the pilot's chair and grabs at the controls. Which immediately lock up. 

"Wha- are you kidding me right now?" Lance yells. He knows that time is running short. "I get that you're picky about who flies you," He says through gritted teeth. "But now isn't really time to be choosey! We need to help these prisoners and Keith needs to get to the medical bay as soon as possible? No one has time for earning your stupid respect!" In the following second after his little rant, he flushes and thinks of the consequences. This. This isn't the way to gain her respect. It isn't going to work. In fact, he's probably killed them all just because-

The controls loosen up under his hands. Her systems come online with a deafening roar. Lance has no idea what he did to change her mind, but he's not going to waste anymore time thinking about it. Together, he and Red get the fuck out of the prison ship and head for home. 

He turns to look at Keith who is sitting on the floor behind him, rubbing at his head. Lance wills Red to go faster, more than relieved when she complies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think the next chapter will be the last... I am sorry for the wait. I was in an accident last month, just a week after my graduation. (I got hit by a motorcycle lmao) Things have been tough and I seem to be at one of those crossroads. I'm not sure I'm entirely happy with how this fic is turning out, but a lot of this fic was for me to improve, flex my writing muscles, and to actually finish something even if it took forever. I hope that you've enjoyed it along the way! 
> 
> My tumblr is miraculance, follow me there if you like! <3


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance takes the leap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Chase/Aggpo. Without her, you probs wouldn't be reading this.

There's a celebration now that Voltron has emerged victorious. It's only a few days after taking the prison ship fiasco, but Lance guesses that things turned out better than the indigenous people of this planet expected them to go. 

The people of Ilac were fluffy, almost rabbit like creatures. They were over the moon (of which they had three) about the return of their prince, a beloved diplomat. There was a speech, a feast, and something that was basically the equivalent of a parade. Now, with the sun setting, the shades of pink painting the sky, the real party was beginning. 

A well deserved victory, he knows. It didn't really feel like that in the moment. There've been so many close calls. No one on the mission was severely injured, and there'd be no lasting scars. Hundreds of more missions were waiting for him and the rest of the team, he knows that. 

It turns out, Keith did have a concussion, though a mild one. He had made sure that Keith made it to the med room and into a pod before he had a chance to get his shoulder some attention. Not once did he think about how cool it was to fly Red, to have some semblance of respect from her. 

In the past couple of days, he's had a lot of time to sulk over the whole thing. He should be happier. No one else on Team Voltron has managed to pilot the Red Lion (besides the Red Paladin, of course), and no one expected it to be Lance. Hell, even Lance didn't think that he'd be the one to do it. All in all, he should be parading it around in everyone's face. 

He did a little bit, though that was just so that no one would come over to him and have some god awful heart to heart with him. Hunk obviously wants to talk about it, but Lance still hasn't forgotten the time when Hunk read Pidge's journal. With Hunk and Allura on the castleship, rumors spread faster than a cold in an elementary school. 

So he's left leaning on a balcony during what looks like a really cool party on a desert planet. There's laughter, twinkling lights, and something close enough to alcohol. This is starting to become a habit. He really hopes there's no bomb planted somewhere in the gardens. The huge purple flowers sure look like they could hide something explosive, though. 

There's this dilemma that's had him acting like a maniac lately. Avoiding the issue has felt easier in the past. It looks like there's enough room in there for something explosive. He sighs and leans against the hardened sand architecture. The surprisingly smooth sculptures were flowing, inspired by the dunes that went on endlessly outside the kingdom's borders. 

That's probably why he's spent the last few days stuck in his own head, trying to figure out why something like impressing Red seemed so important and why that all fell away during a crucial moment. The answer is pretty obvious, he knows, which is why he'd been avoiding it for so long. But now, with the thought that each and every stupid mission could lead to death, he's toying with the completely insane idea that he should... _talk_ about his feelings. Ugh. 

Or! Or, he could not. He could bury his need to impress Keith, to make Keith like him in some form or another. That could be the true responsible thing to do. See, if he tells Keith that he has some stupid feeling-thing for him, then Keith might get uncomfortable, ultimately destroying everyone's ability to form Voltron. So really, how could he talk about something, especially since he can't yet define what it is? 

Then he hears Shiro's voice in his head, saying all the Shiro things like, it'd be better for you. It'll build team strength. If you worry about doing this you'll miss out on doing something great blah blah blah. Stupid Shiro. 

Well, what about him? What about how he's feeling? Isn't there a responsibility to protect himself, his own feelings? Because, God. Lance isn't sure he can handle rejection out here in space. There's nowhere to run, not really. Not when he's living in the same castle as Keith. 

Keith isn't cruel, though. He wouldn't go blabbing about this hypothetical heart to heart to whoever would listen. That guy is like a vault when it comes to his personal life. Lance doesn't know anything about him beyond his talents. The Galra thing came out because he was beaten half to death. 

Still. Keith would _know_. And Lance knows that it'd be difficult hiding how crushed he'd be around the others. Mindmelding can really bring things out in the open. He groans loudly. Drama is only fun when it's fake. 

The least he can do, he decides, is to tell Keith he's sorry. Things have been weird between them lately, and he knows that that's all on him. Keith even seemed like he wanted to call a truce. Hanging out with him wasn't as bad before he decided to go and mess it all up. Apologies aren't easy, but he knows it's for the best. Whatever comes after? 

Eh, he's going to have to wing it. Hey, what's the worst that can happen? 

He turns and looks out over the celebration. Lance wants to get this over with, before he loses the nerve and goes back to sulking all over again. It should be easy to spot the iconic red and white armor, but the residents here are draped in white ceremonial clothes. Which, great, but come on.

Lance steps into the crowd, his heart rate already starting to pick up. He's trying not to conjure up every scenario in which Keith will react poorly, but it turns out he's got a pretty great imagination. 

While in the thick of the crowd, he comes across one of the people volunteering to wait on the royalty and their guests. Lance is offered a drink which he suddenly finds he can't refuse. They don't call it liquid courage for nothing, right?  
He downs half of it in about 3 seconds, then continues to search the crowd for Keith. The guy usually isn't that hard to find. This is probably karma or something. Which really isn't fair since Lance is trying to make up for how he's been acting. If anything, karma should be on his side. 

Towards the outskirts of the party, Lance finds Keith sitting down with one of the natives, listening intently to what the other has to say. 

Jealousy burns through him, making his face hot, with betrayal hot on it's tracks. Then, he takes a deep breath. As talented as he is at jumping to conclusions, he's not going to do that this time. Nor is he going to lose his mind even if Keith is flirting with some alien rabbit guy. It's hard not to let the hurt, however irrational, get to him. Still, he tries. 

Lance walks with false confidence in each step. It helps ease his nerves to a more manageable level. Then, Keith glances up in his direction. The Ilacite follows his gaze. Boy, does he wish he was as sneaky as Pidge was right about now. Then he would have known to just go around, instead of using his big, stupid ego to announce his presence. 

Time seems to make up it's own rules, suddenly becoming very fast and very slow as Lance continues to walk towards the two. He isn't even that far anymore, but each step takes a bit out of him. His resolve is fading. Miraculously, he ends up standing in front of Keith. 

"Hey, Keith... and friend," He smiles at the Ilacite, who seems to be watching him with interest. Great, just let the alien sit back and enjoy the impending humiliation. That'll do wonders for the working alliance. "Uh, I was hoping we could talk?" His voice cracks on the word talk, making him feel smaller still. 

"Alright," Keith says. He remains sitting in his seat, expectant. 

Lance cannot believe he has to make it clearer. Internally, he groans. Maybe it's not too late to make a joke about his dumb gloves. Or even just say that it wasn't the worst mission they've ever had. 

Oh my god. Just do it. Just SAY something. Jesus. 

Lance looks down at his boots and takes a moment to collect himself. This is definitely in the top ten list of the most difficult things he's ever had to do in his life. No exaggeration. After a deep, cleansing breath, he looks back up. Keith's raised an eyebrow. 

"I kinda meant alone?" Oh wait, he really doesn't want a repeat of last time. If Shiro finds out he's been rude, even accidentally, he might get another lecture. Or worse, he might set Allura on him. Yikes. "No offense though." He tells the Ilacite. The ilacite blinks at him, and he thinks that that's probably a good sign. 

"Alright," Keith says again, standing up slowly. He waits, allowing Lance to take the lead. So, he does, walking towards what looks like an undisturbed part of the party. Quiet, like he knows Keith likes it. At the same time, it's a spot where Lance can easily slip away. He might want to make a quick escape after this. Nothing wrong with being prepared. 

"What's this about?" Keith asks, as soon as they stop. His arms are crossed. It's a familiar look, yet lacks the usual stoney glare. 

Lance thought it was hard enough walking up to Keith. Being alone with him while he's waiting on some sort of explanation makes him feel like he's got to build up his courage from scratch. He takes another sip of the drink that the waiter person was passing around. At this point, he can't even taste it. 

"Uh, well," Lance begins. "I just wanted to talk about how things were. Have been, lately," His poor heart can't take this sort of pressure. 

Keith doesn't really say anything, which doesn't help. 

"I've been kind of a jerk. And it was really... shitty of me to treat you that way," Lance says quickly. As the words finally come out, he feels a weight being lifted from him. In it's place, a different sort of dread is beginning to set in. It's not like Keith has to forgive him. Despite knowing this, he continues. "I guess I was just trying to... impress you?" Okay, that last part was definitely the hardest thing to say. Lance has been keeping that a secret, even from himself, since the Garrison. "Whenever I fell short of that I lashed out. Which again, my bad." 

Keith blinks. A small smile makes it way onto his face. Lance feels a dangerous amount of hope being to grow within him. 

"You were trying to impress me?" Keith asks. Oh god. That's what he took from all of this? Lance might have to take that quick escape route he was thinking about before. "Why?" 

"Well!" Although outdoors and the temperature starting to fall, Lance is starting to feel flushed. "Because!" He crosses his arms and shrugs. Does he really have to spell it out? Lance had to work for the answer himself, so he's not sure why Keith needs one right away. 

That small smile becomes a bigger one. Lance's knees get weaker in the process. He prays that Keith isn't as perceptive as some of the other members on his team. Which reminds him- he looks over his shoulders looking for the damn gossiping rats that report to Allura. That's gotten him into trouble more than once. 

"Because?" Keith echos. Asshole. Here he is, trying to apologize and Keith is gonna go ahead and make a challenge out of it. That's just who they are though, he guesses. But it isn't a bad thing. It's fun as hell, and Lance wouldn't mind trading challenges with Keith for a long time. So he'll take the bait. And maybe it's still a little bit of him trying to impress Keith, and maybe it's a little because it's making Keith smile. 

"Yeah, because." The extra incentive helps him keep this up. He takes a step forward, getting into Keith's space as he's so often inclined to do. "Because you're always showing off how cool you are." 

Keith blinks. The heat from the desert must be getting to him as well, since there's now a light dusting of pink across his cheeks. It's not a bad color on him, he notes. "I'm not showing off," he says. 

"Well, then," Lance smirks. That shyness gives him the boost to say something incredibly stupid. "I guess that just means I think you're cool." He thinks it's impossible for his heart to beat any faster than it already is. 

"Ugh," Keith says, turning away. The pink hue on his face darkens. Lance thinks that means he wins the challenge and smiles triumphantly. "Yeah, well," Keith turns back. "I think you're fun to be around." 

"Oh yeah?" Lance can't believe the conversation he's having. He also can't really believe that Keith is playing along. How their banter seems to be turning into something else entirely. 

“Yeah, when you’re not being a dick,” Keith retorts. They’re about as close as they usually get in these moments. Lance wonders if maybe there’s another epiphany waiting for him if he considers why that is. He wonders if Keith has already had that thought. If, like always, Keith is one step ahead. And yet, in this competition of theirs, whatever the context, he doesn’t mind who wins or loses. In games like this, there might not be any losers at all. 

“I’m workin’ on it,” Lance knows that this isn’t the end. That he’s still got… issues to work through. His inferiority isn’t going to disappear overnight, nor will his need to be validated. He wasn’t lying to Keith when he said he was working on it. Being up in space and constantly confronting his fears tends to force character growth. “So… Race you to the castle?”

Keith takes a step back. There’s a glint in his eye that always seems to rile Lance up. He loves it. Loves this. 

As they run towards the castle, Lance thinks about what comes next. It’d be so easy to issue another competition or whatever. He looks over at Keith and considers the real challenge. Just talking about shit, and being open about how he feels.

And you know what? He thinks he’s up for that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end? Unless people want an epilogue. Was it a disjointed mess with an unsatisfying conclusion? YOU BET. But I finished a fic for pretty much the first time and I'm pretty happy with that. Even if I did release a baby chapter once a month. Your comments and kudos made me feel so happy. I hope that you enjoyed this. 
> 
> With this officially finished, I can work on my miraculous fic. Which has gone... untended to for a while lol. But I also want to write a werewolf!keith fic, or a fic based on my Accident. (i want to put those feelings somewhere, but it'd be better in fic because it'd be klance. i've not had the fortune of falling in love while my bones mended.) 
> 
> Anyway. Thanks again. I love you all. I hope to improve on both my skill and my work ethic. <3 Check out my tumblr miraculance if you want. 
> 
> aLSO also happy season 3 in less than 2 weeks!


	6. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This... thing of theirs is so new. How the fuck does he do this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chase/Aggpo is my dream spouse. How have I ever gotten by without them???

Keith can count on one hand the number of significant relationships he's had before. Well, maybe two hands now, since joining Voltron. The point is, he's really not all that used to... Well, this. Him and Lance. Close. After saying some awkward things back on Ilac, they've been officially unofficially together. 

There are times of course when he and Lance still compete against one another in some stupid shit. He thinks that that will never be something that'll fade away. And truthfully, he likes it. Lance makes him push himself harder, makes him better. Plus, now he kind of gets wanting to impress someone. There's this face that Lance makes whenever Keith does something particularly- 

Anyway. 

Before Voltron, his closest friendship was with Shiro, and they weren't exactly touchy feely. In fact, the closest they got was sparing. There has been hugs since his return, but even those are few and far between. It feels alien to reach out. 

Which brings him back to Lance. 

Lance easily drapes himself across Hunk, does Allura's hair, give Pidge some skin care tips... All so easily. As if touch is second nature. There's no personal space with him. Meanwhile, Keith struggles to stay put when their knees knock together on the couch. 

It's not discomfort, per se. He's just not used to it. He'd like to try, at least. For Lance. When are the right moments to try? Should they like, hold hands or something? When? For how long? What if he gets sweaty? Lance is particular about getting grime on himself. 

Ugh. Being alone for such a long time meant he didn't have to worry about social niceties like this. 

As out of the loop as he is (which Lance still reminds him, though perhaps a little more gently now), he knows that in relationships, people touch. People... kiss. It should come as no surprise that he's never kissed anyone before. 

Other cadets in the garrison would gush about their weekends. Dates that they've gone on. Of course there was talk of kissing. As well as... other. Activities. Keith never saw them as a big deal before. No opportunities sprung up, and he didn't care about that. 

Then there was Voltron. It should've been easy to focus on the task at hand: save the universe. Then there was Lance. Lance was in his face, both in good ways and bad. And then he started to think about kissing. 

So they're together now. Lance has probably kissed dozens of people before. Is he waiting? Impatient? In all likelihood, he'll realize that Keith isn't as cool as he thought. It wouldn't be the first time someone has decided to give up on him. 

He groans, knowing that he's overthinking. Sitting here and letting these thoughts consume him won't do anyone any good. He should do something. Stagnation was never something Keith was able to do. Unlike all those other times where he could just act, there's no clear path here. No manual. 

There are people he could talk to, but that- God. Shiro would get this look on his face, and Keith isn't sure he can handle that just yet. Pide is a no. Hunk and Allura are gossiping fucks. 

Embarrassingly enough, he catches his thoughts drifting, wondering what it would be like to have an arm wrapped around Lance's waist. Would that be against some weird Voltron rule? Like, should paladins refrain from some PDA? It might expose a weakness to the Galra, but if it's just on some diplomatic mission, then he can't see a reason why not... 

"Keith!" 

Keith blinks and notices that Shiro has this weird look. How long has he been standing there, by the goo machine? 

"Sorry, Shiro," He apologizes, stepping away from the spigit. Operating these things under duress have proved to be a terrible idea. Hunk has told him all about it once. 

"Where's your head at?" Shiro asks. There's some concern in his expression. Keith hates that he's the one who put it there. Shiro has enough to deal with. Leading Voltron is not easy, so little squabbles and confused, new relationships shouldn't be something he has to hear about. 

"Just got distracted," He shrugs. It's a shit excuse, but then again, Keith has never been very good at lying. Maybe there's a way to practice? Is there a training simulation for learning to lie better? He should ask Allura later...

"This isn't the first time," Shiro points out. Great, so he's noticed. Keith ducks his head, avoiding Shiro's questioning gaze. "I don't want to see you getting hurt just because there’s been something on your mind. Talk to me," 

Keith sighs. There's not even a subtle way to put this. If he says he's been seeing someone, it'll take seconds for Shiro to deduct who it's been. Sometimes he hates living on a ship with only six other people. 

"Me 'n Lance are sort of... seeing each other," He grumbles. God, he can't even look Shiro in the eye. 

"Really?" There's a smile in his voice. "I'm happy for you. The both of you," 

Despite the embarrassment, Keith looks at Shiro. He really does look happy. "It might not be the best idea," He argues. Not that he'll break up with Lance. The very thought of it makes him feel sick. They haven't even really started yet. "Neither of us knows what we're doing," 

Shiro's smile becomes sympathetic. "Well, no one really knows what they're doing when it comes to dating," Shiro says. It sounds like the default response. And while it's nice to imagine that everyone goes through some awkward phase where they stumble through this weird, barely defined feeling, Keith doesn't want to. There's got to be some basics that he's missing out on. "What are you worried about, exactly?" 

It's harder to voice his concerns than he thought. All he can come up with is, "I just don't want to mess up. What if I'm not doing what he wants to do, or not going fast enough?" 

Shiro hums. "Do you think Lance will break up with you just because you're not doing things 'fast enough'?" He asks. 

Of course the answer is no, and the fact that it's so obvious kind of annoys him. 

"Do you think maybe Lance is in a similar position?" 

The annoyance grows a little more. He appreciates Shiro's advice, he does. But if he only thought of this stuff himself, he wouldn't have to tell Shiro in the first place. His business would remain his own. Keeping secrets isn't always in the team's best interest though, so if he had to tell someone, he's glad it's Shiro. He takes a deep breath and nods slowly. 

"You're right," Of course he's right. His doubts are still there, however, they’re not quite as pervasive as they were before. And yet, he still has no clue on what he should be _doing_ in his and Lance's relationship. If only he could train on people skills. People skills and lying. 

-

Since Lance has been bugging him to stay out of the training room as often as he does, Keith instead spends some time with Red. Sitting on top of her is nice. Quiet. Moments of peace can be difficult to come by. Solitude is becoming just as rare. 

He leans back against the cool metal, looking up at the high ceiling. He's tempted to take her out, find some planet so he can look back at the stars. Funny how even out in space, he hasn't gotten sick of them. There are still so many worlds out there left to explore. Other constellations to see. 

"Oh, is this where you were hiding?" Lance suddenly appears, his arms crossed. He looks like he's dangling from the edge of Red. She won't let him fall. Once she saw how happy he's been, Red has warmed up to Lance. She likes them as a team. "Y'know it's almost time for dinner, right? Bet you'll never guess what we're gonna have," He slides up on top of Red and crawls over to Keith before laying down next to him. Though they aren't touching, Keith can feel how close he is. 

"Hunk's experimenting again?" He asks, turning his head to look at Lance. Lance has got a smile that's so soft, Keith thinks his lips must feel the same. 

Lance nods. "Yeah. He's going to make some tacos. The things that guy can do with goo," He sighs, a dreamy look taking over his features. 

Keith wants to do something, to be part of the reason he's happy. That's probably why he reaches out so that the back of his hand is touching Lance's. While Lance's eyes widen, he doesn't pull away, so neither does he. His hand feels warm. This definitely counts as a victory. If all of this is instinctual, he might actually get away with not looking like a complete idiot. 

Strangely, it's hard to keep looking at Lance while he's got that smile on his face, so he turn to look at the ceiling once more. But he's smiling too. It's weird how something so simple can make him feel so much. It seems that wasn't enough for Lance, since he's taking Keith's hand properly now. 

He wonders what it would be like, them walking hand in hand together into the dining room. Keith seldom makes his feelings public. Well, he tries not to anyway. It would make Lance happy he’s sure, and that's reason enough to go through whatever humiliation that would await him. With Lance, he finds there's a lot he wouldn't mind doing, just to make him happy. The thought scares the shit out of him. It doesn't make him any less willing. 

"So?" Lance says. Keith forces himself to look, even knowing that the butterflies will increase tenfold. "We gonna go to dinner, or what?" 

“Yeah,” Keith says. He sits up, already feeling a little better about the whole relationship thing. Clearly, he’s been overthinking it. Instincts seem to have carried him pretty far, and it’s what he’s known for. 

Just before they reach the dining room, Lance pulls his hand up to his mouth and kisses it like it's nothing. Keith thought he'd be used to Lance's flirtations by now, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't flustered. He tries to hide his smile by looking away. It only seems to make Lance smile wider. Then he punches Keith's shoulder lightly before heading into the dining room. 

It might be his imagination but dinner tastes better than usual. 

\- 

After that evening, things were easier for him. Little touches here and there were something that was easy to warm up to. Sometimes he's the one to brush his hand against Lance's, though it is still usually Lance to initiate. 

But because of this new found freedom, he thinks that they're being more obvious. The looks that Lance shoots him are nice, yet sappy as fuck. He thinks the expressions he sends back are probably just as bad. Sometimes. 

If that doesn't tip off the rest of the team, Shiro's constant teasing looks must. He'll smile into his mug while watching the two of them. At least he keeps his comments about this budding relationship between the two of them. Keith would die if he said 'you guys are cute together' in front of everyone. 

Ugh, he's getting as dramatic as Lance is. He supposes there are worse things to be, so he just brushes this thought away. 

They returned to planet Kor to discuss an upcoming coup against the Galra in the Crescent Quadrant. Lance also found the time to (reluctantly) apologize to Kreshen, the one Keith was chatting with before, for his behaviour the last time they were here. It was amusing to watch, but Keith was also impressed with how cool and mature Lance has proved himself to be lately. 

He really wants to kiss Lance. 

Odd how often that thought has infiltrated his mind. It's made a home there, a permanent residence. If Keith doesn't do something soon, that thought is going to start blaring music loudly. He smiles when Lance turns to look at him, and he gets one in return. 

They're just about to wrap up here. The Korish are more than happy to stand with Voltron, even if it means going to war. Their knowledge and abilities to fight off planet will be a vital tool in making sure this plan is successful. Some even seem eager to return to their roots of being space vikings or whatever. In fact, they're so grateful, they present Voltron traditional hunting knives. 

Instead of leaving right away, Shiro suggests they all take some time to explore the underground glacial city. Last time they only saw the surface castle and inside the monarch's war room. He shoots Keith a look. 

At this point, Keith is getting a little tired of communicating solely through glances, but he thinks he understands what their fearless leader is trying to say. 

He strides over to Lance, grabs his hand, and exits the room without a word. 

Well, that definitely sent a message to the team. Good. He didn't want to have to make some official announcement type thing. Plus, the look on Lance's face is pretty priceless. Between the cold and his shock, his cheeks and the tip of his nose are pink. 

"Where are we going?" Lance asks. 

"No clue," Keith replies. It's not like he knows the city any better than anyone else on the team. It's been awhile since they've been let loose, allowed to explore. He really likes the Korish people. If it weren't for the persistent cold and thunderous parties, he might want to learn more about them. 

Their little adventure is fun. The Voltron armor and obvious alien appearances make them recognizable, and they're offered some of the local cuisine not too far from the castle's entrance. It's a large, square, scaly looking creature on a stick, charred. 

"Think this was cooked over a fire?" Lance asks, eyeing the snack. 

Keith shrugs, then takes a bite. It's not too far off from a fish taste, and almost anything is better than goo anyway. Lance follows suit and smiles. He ends up asking the cook over the counter if they could get a recipe. Hunk would appreciate that. 

Somehow, Keith manages to get food smeared all over his mouth. In all likelihood, it's because he hasn't had a proper meal in forever and thus forgot what manners were. Good food can do that to you. Except to Lance, who of course still looks impeccable. And because Lance is who he is, he somehow whips a napkin out of nowhere and uses it to whip something off the corner of Keith's mouth. 

"You're such an animal sometimes," Lance says fondly. 

Keith's face grows warm. All he can do in response is give Lance a gentle shove. 

What an asshole. 

After they are done with food, they go back to walking through the city. It's not really Keith's scene, but Lance looks like he's thriving in a city environment. This time, Lance is the one to reach for his hand. It feels like they're a normal couple, even though they're surrounded by aliens. The one thing he could do without are the Korish people staring at them. A hazard of being a legendary defender. 

Though the ice above them is thick, he can tell that the dual suns are beginning to set, casting a purple like glow on the ice sculpted city around them. The ice already made it look like it was shining, but this is something else. 

Not for the first time, he wishes he had a camera. He wants to remember this moment for as long as he can. Happy memories are few and far between with him. Voltron has unintentionally been this weird outlet of validation for him. Obviously, he's going to put his responsibilities first but... he's always going to be grateful for all the things that's come along with the terrifying weight of saving the universe. He wouldn't trade it for anything. 

There's a slope at the edge of the city that Lance manages to drag him towards. It's a stupid thing to climb- there's really nothing up there, but he'll comply regardless. 

"C'mon, trust me on this one," Lance says. He's not usually the one to suggest exercising for the sake of it. 

"Trust you, huh?" Keith asks. "We're going to end up in a ditch." 

"No, you'll end up in a ditch! I'll push you down this hill if you keep complaining," He sticks his tongue out. 

Keith sighs, but doesn't make another comment, even it was just to tease his- to tease Lance. 

Turns out, Lance had a good idea asking him to come up here. They have a pretty good view of the city. Furthermore, it's away from all the people. It's so quiet. He smiles a little, then squeezes Lance's hand. 

"Pretty cool, right? I told you so." Lance turns his head to make another funny face at Keith, but this time he can't really bring himself to care. This is pretty awesome. He doesn't even know what to say. Then again, talking has never been his strong point. He knows that, Lance knows that. 

Instead he finds himself turning to look at Lance a little more closely. He’s got this dumb grin on his face that Keith loves, and his cheeks are even pinker than before. It looks like he’s got a little sweat gathering on his forehead, probably from climbing the stupidly steep hill. All so they could find a bit of peace in the chaos that is their lives. 

Keith leans in and kisses him. He’s not sure if he’s doing this right, but he doesn’t care. Lance smiles against him, and that’s all that matters right now. When he pulls away, he realizes that it was kind of chaste. For some reason that embarrasses him, and fuck, he can’t stop smiling about it either. 

“You kissed me,” Lance says. He sounds kind of dazed. 

“Yeah?” Keith, in turn, sounds breathless. Over a quick peck. God. “So?” 

“ _I_ was supposed to kiss _you._ ” He’s throwing his hands up in the air now. 

“Oh, my god,” Keith groans. He places his head just under Lance’s chin. “If you don’t stop complaining I’m going to push _you_ down the hill,” He would, too. 

Lance snorts, then wraps his arms around Keith’s waist. “I’m not complaining. I just can’t believe you beat me to the punch. _Again._ ” 

Keith makes a disgusted noise. He can’t believe he likes this guy as much as he does. But he does, and he can’t bring himself to regret it, or wish that he didn’t. He peers up at Lance who is grinning. Yeah. This isn’t too bad. Especially now that Lance is leaning down to kiss him again. 

They stay up on that hill for a while before they know it’s time to head back. The rest of the crew will be waiting and, God, now that they know, the teasing will commence full force. Shiro will have no reason to keep those little knowing smiles and cutesy comments to himself anymore. 

As annoying at they are, Keith finds he really doesn’t mind all that much. He’s found his place in the universe, and it’s with the people that he’s grown to love. 

Right now though, he’s walking hand in hand with Lance. 

And that? 

Feels just right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So epilogue! A couple of you have asked for one and who am I if not (desperate for validation) generous?  
> I love you all. Hope you don't mind that it was in Keith's POV. This might be the fluffiest thing I've ever written??
> 
> Follow me on tumblr! My username is miraculance! I posted a preview of this chapter but no one seems to have seen it. So. Just so you know.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos are my lifeblood. Please be gentle. 
> 
> My tumblr is miraculance if you want some sneak peaks and sporadic drabbles btw.


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